US pull-out 'would mean bloodshed everywhere'

Coalition forces must stay in Iraq and should not even mention the possibility of withdrawal lest it embolden the armed resistance, the country's elder statesman said.

Adnan Pachachi demanded that that Washington hand over political control as soon as possible. But he warned that the speedy departure of coalition forces would be a disaster.

Mr Pachachi, 80, the most senior member of Iraq's governing council and a man suggested as a future president, said: "We know the Americans are anxious to leave. But to do so now would bring bloodshed everywhere.

"They must hand over political power but in the current security crisis any talk of a withdrawal would swell the ranks of the insurgents."

Mr Pachachi's comments appeared to be shared yesterday by people in Nasiriyah, scene of Wednesday's devastating terrorist attack.

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At the funeral of one of the nine Iraqi victims, Mohammed Oder, his father made an impassioned plea for the Americans to remain.

"How can Iraqis protect themselves against attacks like the one which killed my son? We must have the coalition forces here," he said.

Hundreds of mourners arrived at Nasiriyah's central hospital to collect their dead, among them four schoolchildren.

Their remains were unidentifiable after they were caught in the explosion outside the headquarters of the Italian police mission. A demonstration was planned at the blast site by local Iraqis to show support for the Italian presence but in the end only a handful of people turned up.

At the hospital, the mood was turning to anger as mourners blamed foreign fighters for the attack.

"The people who did this are not Iraqis. They are foreigners who don't care who they kill," said Ibrahim Faisal, a relative of one of the dead.

Many Iraqis now fear a concerted terrorist campaign as the insurgents move against soft targets in the south after a security clampdown in central Iraq.

Paul Bremer, Washington's pro-consul, who is known to favour early elections, yesterday returned to the country with orders to speed up the handover of power to a provisional government.